FBR Tax Portal Glitches

Pakistan’s tax system is once again under scrutiny as FBR tax portal glitches continue to frustrate taxpayers, business owners, and professional tax consultants across the country. With the filing season for Tax Year 2025 already underway, mounting complaints against the Federal Board of Revenue’s (FBR) IRIS portal have raised serious concerns about the government’s digital governance and the future of tax compliance. From delayed portal activation to faulty calculations, broken UOM selections, misleading SMS alerts, and missing notices, the issues are now widespread enough to demand immediate high-level intervention.

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KTBA Flags Legal and Technical Violations in Income Tax Filing

The Karachi Tax Bar Association (KTBA), one of the leading bodies representing tax practitioners in Pakistan, recently issued a formal warning to the FBR regarding persistent technical and legal issues that are obstructing the filing of income tax returns for Tax Year 2025.

In its letter to FBR Chairman Rashid Langrial, the KTBA stated that the delayed activation of the IRIS portal for belated returns violated Rule 34A of the Income Tax Rules, 2002, and restricted the statutory filing period under Section 118 of the Income Tax Ordinance, 2001. These regulatory gaps have caused confusion among taxpayers who rely on timely access to the system for compliance.

The association also highlighted several recurring technical faults, including:

• Incorrect tax calculations

• Failed file uploads

• Inaccurate pre-populated MIS data

• Inconsistent legal treatment of returns and entries

Most concerning, however, is the portal’s deteriorating performance. Users have reported sluggish browsing, frequent timeouts, and transaction failures that make filing nearly impossible during peak hours. KTBA warned that if these FBR tax portal glitches continue, compliance rates could fall sharply.

KCCI Sounds Alarm Over Sales Tax Returns Blocked by IRIS Issues

The frustration is not limited to income tax filers. The business community, particularly the Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI), has strongly criticized the IRIS system for obstructing thousands of sales tax registrations and returns.

KCCI President Muhammad Jawed Bilwani wrote directly to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, urging an immediate intervention. He revealed that the IRIS system has inexplicably restricted the Unit of Measurement (UOM) to only “kilograms (kgs).” This is a major blow for industries that rely on other units such as:

• Litres

• Meters

• Number of pieces

• Per unit measurements

This oversight, according to Bilwani, reflects a disturbing lack of understanding of industrial diversity and business practices. He described the flaw as both “technically incompetent and administratively unjustifiable,” especially because businesses are being penalized for discrepancies caused solely by FBR’s system.

Despite FBR’s acknowledgement of the issue on March 20, 2025, very little improvement has been observed. KCCI representatives also reported unprofessional conduct at the FBR headquarters, including missed meetings and lack of response from senior officials. Multiple chambers, including those from Hyderabad and other regions, have echoed similar concerns, warning that the glitches may lead to costly filing errors and financial losses.

Taxpayers Suffer as IRIS Notices Fail to Reach Users

The IRIS portal is built to serve as the official communication channel between taxpayers and the FBR. However, many users say the system fails to notify them of important proceedings, notices, and deadlines.

According to tax professionals, around 96 percent of taxpayers open their IRIS account only once a year—during the return filing season. Because IRIS notifications do not always appear in the inbox and are not sent through email or SMS, many taxpayers remain unaware of audits, follow-up questions, and demands until recovery actions have already been initiated.

KTBA President Zeeshan Merchant emphasized that the issue has pushed compliant citizens into inadvertent default. Many taxpayers report that:

• Only the first notice appears in the IRIS inbox

• Follow-up notices are not visible

• New notices sometimes disappear or fail to generate

• No alerts are sent via email, mobile SMS, or post

The tax bar recommended mandatory SMS and email notifications for every notice, along with an overhaul of the IRIS inbox system to ensure complete transparency.

Limitations of File Upload Size Creating Bottlenecks

Another major technical hurdle is the IRIS portal’s restrictive 5MB upload limit. Tax filings, especially those involving scanned documents, invoices, and attachments, often exceed this size. Taxpayers have expressed frustration over repeatedly compressing documents or splitting files, which not only wastes time but also increases the risk of missing or corrupt data.

For a modern digital tax system, such limitations are outdated and counterproductive, especially when compared to the document capacities of international tax platforms.

Unauthorized SMS Alerts Add to Public Confusion

As if system flaws were not enough, taxpayers recently received SMS reminders urging them to file income tax returns before the September 30, 2025 deadline. The messages caused panic among many who had already filed their returns or were confused about the deadline.

The FBR later clarified that it had not authorized these alerts. PTA informed the authority that a telecom operator’s glitch caused the messages to be sent accidentally. FBR requested PTA to resolve the matter promptly to avoid further confusion.

Though unintended, the incident added yet another layer of distrust among taxpayers already frustrated with FBR tax portal glitches.

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Economic and Administrative Consequences

The consistent failure of the IRIS system threatens more than just user convenience. Experts warn that these glitches could:

• Reduce tax compliance

• Increase filing errors

• Lead to unnecessary penalties and litigation

• Damage taxpayer confidence

• Reduce government revenue

• Slow down administrative operations

Pakistan’s digital tax transformation, once considered a major step forward, risks losing credibility unless urgent reforms are implemented.

Conclusion

From income tax to sales tax and communication errors, the FBR tax portal glitches have exposed serious weaknesses in the country’s digital tax infrastructure. Both KTBA and KCCI have demanded immediate reforms, while taxpayers across Pakistan call for transparency, reliability, and professional oversight.

The solution requires a high-level, multi-institutional effort involving FBR, PTA, software vendors, and business stakeholders. Without swift corrective measures, Pakistan’s tax system may face declining compliance and rising distrust at a critical time.